February 2, Presentation of the Lord

Maybe it’s the human condition, being American or just a personal failing, but I lack patience. Whether it’s waiting for a computer file to open, a traffic light to change — or worse yet, following a driver who doesn’t see the light change — the melody of my life is finger-snapping accompanying the chant “Come on, come on.”

That’s why two characters in today’s Gospel leave me in awe. The first is Simeon, who had been promised that he would see the Messiah. While St. Luke doesn’t say he was old, we just know he was. The second person, Anna, definitely was old at 84. Neither lacked patience. Rather they knew what eludes me: All things happen on God’s schedule, not mine, and those patient enough to accept that will reap rewards, not frustration.

Prayer: Saints Simeon and Anna guide me to the patience you lived each day.